In a report released by SME, 96% of healthcare professionals use 3D printing, such as printing medical models, prostheses, implants and surgical guidelines, etc. It is estimated that the number of medical 3D prints will increase by 2018 .
In her presentation, Lauralyn McDaniel, SME Medical Additive Manufacturing Industry Specialist, explained that "this growth is due to a series of patient-oriented benefits of 3D printing on-demand, which remains the top priority for healthcare providers."
McDaniel commented: 'The emphasis is on facilitating the emergence of POC manufacturing through 3D printing, which benefits patients and physicians / healthcare providers, including better treatment outcomes, as well as reducing operating time and costs.'
The report was conducted by member organizations that want to advance manufacturing in the United States, including medical professionals' input for more than 70 3D printing, including Fried Vancraen, CEO of Materialize, and Katie Wimer, Vice President, Healthcare, 3D Systems Medical Devices .
Hospital care points
Point-of-care is used to describe 'timely' devices for rapid treatment of hospital patients 3D printing of these devices can be done on site, such as at Phoenix Children's Hospital in Arizona, or by contract manufacturers such as 3D Systems, The same model the twins need.
As the experts have pointed out, the report uses some case studies to compile data on the apparent increase in technology.
FDM is the most common
Not surprisingly, as the most cost-effective and widely used technology, material extrusion (FDM, FFF, MEM) is the most common 3D printing device.
Anatomical models are expected to have the highest growth rate of 71% in applications, followed by rapid prototyping and product development (56%) and molds and dies (46%).
At present, anatomical models are most commonly used for surgical planning of sensitive surgery, which may change in the near future.
In the report, Katie Weimer, vice president of medical services at 3D Systems, commented: 'Today, the medical 3D printing industry is largely using traditional industrial prototype materials and as the industry evolves, I believe that when our materials can be more Good print, we will have a greater impact on patient care.
'I believe we will see more applications of biomaterials in the medical 3D printing industry.'
It is worth mentioning that the report also pointed out that 16 of the top 20 hospitals in the United States (according to U.S. News and World Report Rankings) have implemented medical 3D printing strategies in recent years. Between 2010 and 2016, Materialize reported Centralized 3D printing devices using Mimics technology in the U.S. increased by 3200%.